ABB Robotics has added E-Device, a hardware extension that lets operators program and run OmniCore-powered robots from a customer-supplied Windows tablet or PC. The device runs the OmniCore User Interface, which ABB describes as a "unified user experience" shared with its FlexPendant teach pendant.

E-Device supplies the dedicated safety functions for manual robot interaction: an emergency stop, a three-position enabling device, reset and external-control functions. Its enclosure is rated IP 54. ABB says the design addresses the relevant requirements of ISO 10218:2025, and that compliance of a finished robot application still depends on correct integration, risk assessment, verification and validation. Control.com reports the device is CE and UL certified and that the emergency stop ties directly into the robot's emergency logic.

E-Device supports all industrial robots and cobots powered by OmniCore controllers. It does not replace the FlexPendant. ABB positions the two as alternatives, and customers can switch between them under an approved procedure. They cannot be connected to the same controller at the same time. Either one can be unplugged during operation and moved to another robot.

For automation engineers and integrators, the practical change is one fewer dedicated device on the floor. A technician who already works on a Windows laptop can reprogram a robot without walking to a separate station, and ABB says the identical interface across robots and cobots cuts training and commissioning time. Control.com adds that dropping a standalone programming PC also removes one machine that needs patching.

The interface also gives access to AppStudio, ABB's no-code, drag-and-drop tool for building web-based operator screens. Advanced users can extend its components with JavaScript. ABB lists Wizard Easy Programming for graphical programming and RobotStudio for offline programming, simulation and virtual commissioning alongside it. AppStudio is a free download.